PLAYED BY: Bryan Richmond
CHARACTER NAME: Paldo Larpapadom
GENDER: Male
PREFERRED PRONOUN(S): He/him
CLASS: Rogue
AGE: 54
RACE: Human
HAIR: grey, mostly
EYES: hazel
OCCUPATION: Artisan, occasional guard, regular at the taverns of Bladehome
KNOWN SKILLS: alchemy, the gathering of reagents, drinking the little britches under the table
BIRTHPLACE: Valinate
APPEARANCE: Portly, bespectacled, just a bit of a jolly ol’ guy dontcha know
NOTABLE TRAITS: Paldo is fairly gregarious and eager to help. Paldo occasionally gives off “dad” vibes.
RELATIONSHIPS: The many members of the Larpapadom family, other common folk of Bladehome, the Broken Blade, a handful of Shattered Spear drinking buddies, a few ex-wifes and perhaps an ex-husband (buy him drinks for a night and maybe he’ll tell that tale), them lads and lasses at the Busty Bosom Chateau
RUMORS: The Larpapadoms in general, and Paldo specifically, hold the traditions of Richtrag and of their home Valinate in high esteem. Paldo will go to great lengths and spend a lot of silver to recover artifacts of his homeland.
BIO / BACKGROUND HISTORY:
Once farmers-turned-merchant folk in Cul’Claimete, the Larpapadom family moved to Valinate nearly two centuries ago. At that time Paldo’s ancestors embraced many paths to improve their lot. More than a few became Íoclaochra in the Valinate tradition. Eventually the Larpapadoms earned a small reputation as artisans, guards, and merchants eager for travel. This turned to their favor with the outbreak of the undead plague as many of the family were aboard a variety of merchant vessels when Valinate fell. The remaining Larpapadoms gathered and, with the stubbornness only those from Richtrag can muster, drank their way to safety.
After an elder Larpapadom found the journal of a long-thought-lost uncle hidden in a barrel of grog, their fate, and that of a young Paldo, was set. Scrawlings marked with spilled booze detailed a trip across the seas to a new land “for them strange Syndar, poor wretches lost the other boat.” Using clues left in The Book, the Larpapadoms were amongst the first to land on Mardrun. Not the first mind you, drunk Richtcrag scribblings make little sense to drunk Richtrag eyes, and drunk Richtcrag mouths belted out directions that made even less sense to any ear, but they arrived amongst the first wave of refugees nonetheless. That being said, Paldo was the first Larpapadom to lay foot on foreign soil, eager to embrace a new world and perhaps a local drink. Alas, to be so headstrong and cocksure now as he was in his thirties. The grog doesn’t go down like it used to.
Paldo and his brethren kept close to one another, working what trades and caravans they could in the new lands of the Colonists and, occasionally, Ulven territories as well. The Larpapadoms had perhaps a bit better luck with life on Mardrun than some, thanks to an insular nature and a variety of skills on hand. Always keep family close and a whiskey closer, as they say. Valinate shrewdness may have added some spice to Larpapadom success as well.
By the time a much older Paldo heard rumors of Bladehome, he was all too eager to set aside his spear and forge a proper home for the remnants of
Richtcrag. While some of his younger relatives took to the excitement of joining the Broken Blade as warriors and merchants in those early days, Paldo took his own path. Let the little ones earn their feathers, eh. Laying stone and cutting wood made for a long day, a good drink sitting on a bridge just built beside others made for a nice end to it. Sorting out minor cuts, bumps, and bruises, along with other tinkered small fixes to tools and the occasional armor kept things interesting, and was a sure way to make time for an extra sip or two. And if some brigands needed a lesson for interrupting such fine work, well Ol’ Paldo wasn’t one to shy away from providing an education, no sir. For the most part though, Paldo was eager to make friends with Shattered Spear villagers, share a drink or two, concoct a potion when able, and wander off searching for reagents when he could.
Then, after seemingly forever, Bladehome was alive. For a moment, familiar Richtcrag smells and celebrations brought Paldo back to his first, and last, Masquerade. Such joy and wantonness bubbling up out of Richtcrag hardiness. It was when he heard Volrock speak to the people of Bladehome that Paldo knew his heart would never leave. Here was a place for his people. A regular at the Busty Bosom Chateau, he has all but accepted Belterra as a surrogate daughter, a “feisty Larpapadom if there ever was one” by his estimate.
With recent events unfolding, Paldo has decided to take a more active role. It doesn’t sit well with him that the Grimward killed their own clan leader, and another Ulven leader in such a vulgar display, from what he was told. Making war in such a way seemed underhanded, and someone ought to teach those pups some etiquette. Despite many protests behind closed doors in the Larpapadom household, Paldo has taken up his old caravan guard armor (hey, it still fits!) and has fully offered his skills, trades, and service to Bladehome, the Broken Blade, and to Volrock himself.